An athlete competing in events such as bicycling, canoeing, rowing, and other sports where the hands are occupied needs a hydration delivery system for water and other fluids which is convenient and can be operated without using the hands. The athlete must stay properly hydrated during endurance sports activities but needs to do it without using the hands. The system should be light, simple, adjustable and easy to use. Previous systems have had inconvenient designs that cause fumbling with the tubing or having to use the hands to drink.
An example of a hands-free hydration delivery system is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,833 to Edison, entitled “Camel Back”, which disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. This system employs a flexible back pack worn on the back of a bicyclist and connected via a detachable connector to a length of tubing having a tube end with a deformation-type bite valve held in the user's lips and teeth. An issue with these personal hydration delivery systems is that the tube is left dangling, such that release of the output end of the tube from the user's mouth results in the tube falling away from the mouth and requiring the user to retrieve the tube by hand.
Another example of a hands-free hydration delivery system is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 6,283,344 to Bradley, entitled “Hands Free Personal Hydration Delivery System”, which disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. This system employs a complex, multi-part tube system having a middle segment that couples to a helmet, a rear segment that couples to the middle segment at one end and a hydration tube of a back pack at another end, and a front segment that couples to the middle segment at one end and dangles to the side of the user's head. Aside from the overly complex nature of this system, an issue with this system is that the front segment may be subject to downward forces when the user grabs it and may disconnect from the middle segment, thus leaving the user without access to water.
It is therefore desirable to provide an apparatus for securing and positioning the output end of a hydration tube near a region of a user's mouth such that the user can easily and repeatably release and retrieve the output end of the tube using only his mouth.